This invention relates to spare wheel carriers for motor vehicles, especially trucks.
Conventional spare wheel carriers comprise a spindle mounted for rotation on the frame of the vehicle, a cable wound around the spindle and releasably connected at its free end to the spare wheel, whereby rotation of the spindle in one direction lowers the wheel from the vehicle, and a releasable ratchet for normally preventing rotation of the spindle in a direction in which the cable is unwound. In one known arrangement, the ratchet comprises a ratchet wheel on the spindle and a pawl which is spring biased into engagement with the ratchet wheel to allow the cable to be wound on to, but not from the spindle. In order to unwind the cable and to lower the wheel, the pawl is disengaged from the ratchet wheel, for example by using a tommy bar, whereupon the wheel falls to the ground under its own weight.
Since the wheel of a truck is relatively heavy, uncontrolled movement of the wheel during lowering can be dangerous.